Security stepped up in Katra
To ensure the peaceful conduct of the nine-day-long Navratri festival, elaborate security arrangements have been made across the Jammu region, especially in Katra town, the base camp of the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine. In Jammu, the elite commandos of the National Security Guards (NSG) conducted a fresh security audit of the famous Raghunath Mandir in the walled city area of Jammu, ahead of the Navratri celebrations. At the same time, General Officer Commanding (GOC) of White Knight Corps Lt Gen PK Mishra on Monday reviewed the ongoing anti-terror operations in the hilly areas of Udhampur, Doda.
Boy Found in Plane’s Landing Gear at IGIA
In a startling security breach and a rare case of airborne stowaway, a 13-year-old boy from Afghanistan was found wandering near a KAM Airlines aircraft shortly after it landed at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) on Sunday morning. The incident occurred around 11.10 am when the airport’s Security Operations Control Centre (SOCC) received an alert from the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of KAM Airlines. The child, identified as a resident of Kunduz City, Afghanistan, had reportedly arrived on Flight RQ-4401, which had landed in Delhi from Kabul at 10.20 am. Upon investigation, “it was discovered that the teenager had clandestinely boarded the flight by hiding inside the aircraft’s rear central landing gear compartment — a perilous and extremely rare act of stowing away that raised serious safety and security concerns,” told airport security to The Pioneer.
Khalistani terrorist held in Canada
Canadian authorities have arrested Inderjit Singh Gosal, a prominent Khalistani extremist and close aide to Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, in Ottawa on multiple firearms-related charges. Gosal, linked to the banned group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), has emerged as a central figure in the Khalistani separatist movement in Canada following the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023. Gosal’s arrest marks the second time in less than a year that the 36-year-old has been taken into custody. In November 2024, he was briefly detained after allegedly leading a violent assault on Hindu worshippers at a temple in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). At that time, he was released conditionally by Peel Regional Police despite widespread outrage. This latest arrest comes at a critical juncture for India-Canada relations, which are undergoing a tentative thaw after more than a year of diplomatic strain.
Inderjit Gosal is widely believed to be the right-hand man of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the founder of Sikhs for Justice, a US-based secessionist group advocating for a separate Sikh state of Khalistan. The Government of India designated both SFJ and Pannun as terrorists in 2019 and 2020, respectively. Gosal also served as Pannun’s personal security officer and was instrumental in organising Khalistan referendums and rallies across Canada, particularly after the death of Nijjar, another Khalistani leader who was gunned down in British Columbia in 2023. Canadian law enforcement officials have yet to release full details of the charges, but sources suggest Gosal was found in possession of illegal firearms and may face additional charges under Canada’s anti-terrorism laws. The arrest comes just days after a high-level meeting in New Delhi between Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Canadian counterpart Nathalie Drouin. The talks signalled a renewed commitment by both sides to combat terrorism and transnational crime. This shift in tone follows over a year of deteriorating diplomatic ties, sparked by former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s controversial allegation in September 2023 of a possible Indian government link to the assassination of Nijjar. India vehemently denied the charge, calling it baseless and politically motivated. In the months that followed, both nations expelled senior diplomats, effectively freezing bilateral engagement. Relations began to improve after Liberal Party leader Mark Carney won the Canadian parliamentary elections in April 2025, replacing Trudeau. In June, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Carney met on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Canada, where they agreed to pursue “constructive steps” to restore diplomatic stability. Last month, India and Canada reinstated their high commissioners in each other’s capitals, signalling a mutual interest in moving past the impasse. Gosal’s arrest is seen by many analysts as a tangible shift in Ottawa’s previously lenient approach towards separatist groups operating under the banner of free expression. “This is the first high-profile arrest of a known Khalistani operative in Canada since diplomatic relations began to stabilise,” said a South Asia security analyst based in Toronto. “It may indicate a willingness to crack down on extremist elements that threaten both Canadian public safety and bilateral relations with India.” Sikhs for Justice has long been a controversial organisation in India and abroad. It has been implicated in over 100 criminal cases in India, including more than 60 in Punjab alone, ranging from incitement to violence and sedition to terrorist financing. Despite being banned in India, SFJ has continued to operate from North America and parts of Europe, often staging referendums and protests targeting Indian diplomatic missions. Pannun, a dual US-Canadian citizen of Indian origin, remains a fugitive and continues to be active online, issuing provocative threats and statements. While Canadian authorities have yet to clarify whether Gosal will face terrorism-related charges, his arrest is being closely watched in both Ottawa and New Delhi. It could be a litmus test for how serious Canada is about addressing India’s long-standing concerns over extremist activities on its soil. For India, the arrest may serve as a confidence-building measure in what has been one of the most strained bilateral relationships in recent years. As the two countries work to rebuild trust, Monday’s arrest may well become a pivotal moment in defining the future of India-Canada counterterrorism cooperation.